


Bounded

by PartridgeOnAPearTree



Series: Transversal [25]
Category: Dangan Ronpa, Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, Super Dangan Ronpa 2
Genre: Alternate Universe, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-28
Updated: 2016-08-28
Packaged: 2018-08-11 14:00:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7895317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PartridgeOnAPearTree/pseuds/PartridgeOnAPearTree
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“I'm sure that Hinata-kun is just here somewhere.”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bounded

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!!!

“How much do you love Makoto, Komaeda-kun?” It was silent all before this. Naegi’s mother was just humming a few minutes ago as she tinkers with the portable television that seemed to have started malfunctioning a week ago. So the question admittedly takes Komaeda aback, a feeling of embarrassment washing over him.

 

“Well, first of all… I'm willing to stay with him forever, of course. In fact, we already promised that to each other… even if I know that I don’t deserve someone as great as Makoto-kun… I want to try my best to be good enough, at least.” Komaeda carefully replies. So far, he seems to have made a good impression on Naegi’s family, and he's honestly worried for that to shatter in a matter of few seconds once he says something hopelessly wrong. “I also promised to support him in anything he’d aspire to attain, and that he’d always, always be able to count on me.”

 

Naegi’s mother nods, continuing on fiddling with her small screwdriver while looking carefully inside the portable television. “You said you're willing to stay with Makoto forever, Komaeda-kun. How much are you ready to do to make sure you'll be able to keep that?”

 

Somehow, this feels like an interrogation despite the still calm smile on Naegi’s mother’s face. Good thing that the portable television kept her occupied because Komaeda can see that he might get intimidated and even more worried to mess up if she's staring straight at him while asking these questions. “Anything, I suppose… Anything that I can. And if there's something that I can’t, then I’ll still push myself to try.”

 

“Anything.” She repeats, smiling. “What does ‘anything’ mean for you, Komaeda-kun?”

 

“I mean it as it is. Anything, really… though, I suppose I can say it’s anything except the things that might harm Makoto-kun.” Komaeda replies. “I wouldn’t want him to get harmed.”

 

She stops tinkering. “You mean you wouldn’t harm him even if doing so meant that you'll be together forever?”

 

“That’s right.” Komaeda nods. “I respect and look up to Makoto-kun too much to even think of harming him. Nobody should do that, especially not someone like me. Besides… If I have to harm him for us to be together, it just amplifies how much I don’t deserve to be with him.”

 

“I see.” She finally looks up from the portable television, smiling at Komaeda this time. “If it’s for love, it’s still respectable if you said yes, you know.”

 

\--

 

“Oh, Komaeda-kun, there you are!” The voice of Naegi’s father fills the room, and Komaeda quickly turns to its direction with a polite smile. Naegi’s father grins when they make eye contact, and he was holding something in his hand as he walks towards Komaeda.

 

“Good afternoon, sir.” Komaeda greets. While his smile really was polite, he still feels like he’ll be impertinent somehow if that was all the greeting he gives Naegi’s father. Naegi’s father sits beside him, and that was when Komaeda realized that the thing he was holding was a photo album.

 

“I’ve been looking for you because I thought you might like to see Makoto’s pictures growing up.” He laughs. “I bet he's gonna be embarrassed! But don’t worry, don’t worry! I'm sure he's okay with you seeing them.”

 

“Oh, alright.” Komaeda bets Naegi was a cute child. He finds himself smiling in anticipation as Naegi’s father carefully places the photo album on his lap, turning it on the first page for him. “Thank you so much. This is a really big honor for me.”

 

“Don’t act like a stranger now!” There was the reply of Naegi’s father, but Komaeda’s attention was on the first photo that he saw. It was nothing too ordinary—just a picture of a sleeping baby Naegi, but Komaeda can’t stop himself from smiling even more upon seeing that he really was a cute child.

 

The next photo is of a toddler Naegi standing in his crib, his little hands wrapped around the side closest to him. He was curiously looking at the camera, and Komaeda knows that he won’t be exaggerating by saying that the photo seems to have made him feel warm inside.

 

“Makoto has always been such a well-behaved kid.” Naegi’s father speaks again. “That photo, I remember, was taken when we left him alone in the room for a while to entertain some old friends. When I got up to check on him, he was just carefully walking inside the crib!”

 

“He really has been great from the start, huh…” Komaeda comments. He's pretty sure that he can’t say the same for himself. He was not an interesting kid and not cute at all. He knows that he didn’t have amusing ‘talents’ too like learning how to close and open his palms early or cutely uttering broken words. And he's sure that whatever uninteresting things he had as a kid got carried over up until the present time.

 

The next photo was of him in a sandbox, smiling at the camera while holding a toy shovel. There was a kid in the background who looked terrified—Komaeda guessed that that kid must have been one of those kids who wasn’t yet open to being left alone by their parents.

 

There really were a lot of photos to the point that Komaeda had a thought that Naegi’s parents probably take one every day. A photo of Naegi being carried by his father, a photo of him with a dog licking his fingers, of him sitting on the kitchen floor… Komaeda continues to look at the photos, and Naegi’s father says something about them here and there.

 

Then Komaeda reached the start of photos where Naegi must have already been in elementary school, and Komaeda can say that he must have never really lost his cuteness at all. There was one where he's standing in the middle of a group of children, and they all had a wide smile on their faces. Then one where he was standing atop a big rock, a bunch of kids on the ground around it, one where he seems to be attentively watching a movie on the television…

 

Naegi’s father speaks again when Komaeda stops at a photo of Naegi holding a bouquet of roses beside a bed in a place that looks like a hospital. There was a boy on the bed, probably around Naegi’s age, and he seemed to have an injury somewhere in his arms and head, Komaeda judging that from the bandages that he saw. The boy was looking blankly at the camera. Komaeda understands that he must have been in a lot of pain, and he couldn’t bring himself to smile even if a friend nicely visited him. Komaeda remembers the times when he too has always been injured as a child…

 

“That boy is, wait, what was his name again,” Naegi’s father pauses, scratching his chin. “If I recall, I think he's named Kaname. All I know is that Makoto was really worried when he heard this kid fell from a slide. It was very unfortunate—they were playing together at that time too! One different thing to go, and it could have been Makoto in that situation! Personally, I didn’t like this kid because I heard he goes around breaking the other kids’ crayons. I can even remember that this kid did that to Makoto’s crayons too! But Makoto thought that even he deserved to have a visitor because what happened was really sad.”

 

Komaeda slowly nods, softly running his thumb on the photo. Naegi has always been nice to everyone. He always freely gives his kindness no matter what kind of person they are. It’s not the first for Komaeda to think this, but he can’t believe that he's lucky enough to be with such a great person.

 

Next was a photo of a funeral of sorts. It looks like it only happened in this house’s backyard, and Naegi looked like he was sulking, sadly looking at the small makeshift coffin—a box?—that Komaeda can see in the picture. There was a photo of a dog not too far from the coffin, and Komaeda immediately remembers that Naegi mentioned sometime before that he had a dog too back then.

 

“Ah, this one. A really sad memory.” Naegi’s father nods. “Makoto has never been fond of this dog because it always bites him and chews on his stuff, but he tried to spend time with it once so that it would hopefully warm up to him. The next day, we just found out that the dog died of poisoning. We don’t know who did it—probably a neighbor who got annoyed with its barks, not sure. It really was just sad because Makoto was also starting to be fond of it after spending time with it, but then this had to happen.”

 

That was sad, indeed. Komaeda has been really attached to his dog too back then.

 

\--

 

“Thank you so much for being so kind to me during my stay.” Komaeda bows his head. “I consider myself very lucky to have met you all.”

 

“Come visit us anytime you wish, Komaeda-kun!” That was the last thing he has heard before he feels himself wrapped in a warm hug. He was honestly surprised for a while—it took a few seconds before what's going on sunk in—and he can’t believe that he's already so moved by this gesture.

 

Naegi’s mother was the one who currently has him in an embrace, and he closes his eyes to relish in the comfort. It’s been so long since a mother has had him in an embrace. It’s been so long since he actually spent time with a family. The whole weekend, he felt like he wasn’t deserving to be here, but during this moment, he got the feeling that maybe, just maybe, it will be okay if he allows himself to think for a while that it’s good for him to be part of this, after all.

 

“Because Makoto loves you,” She whispers, gently running her fingers through his hair. “I'm going to love you as my son too, alright? So please take care of yourself, and stay with him forever and ever.”

 

\--

 

Komaeda slept again on the way back, and when he woke up, Naegi was dead.

 

He doesn’t process it right away. There's no way that something like that could happen because it’s Naegi, the Super High School Level Hope, and Komaeda’s measly luck shouldn’t be able to do anything to him. Yet there he was beside Komaeda on the bus that they used, lifeless, and it was as if circumstances still wished to continue mocking Komaeda because Naegi’s bloodied head was leaning against his shoulder, as if planting within him a seed of hope that maybe Naegi was just in a peaceful slumber.

 

There was so much blood. It wasn’t even Komaeda’s first time to see blood this abundant, but he couldn’t stop shaking as he continues to stare at Naegi. He couldn’t tear his eyes away. That moment, he knows that it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to claim that he really was frozen in his place.

 

He wills himself to blink repeatedly. Maybe he's just dreaming again. Maybe he's just imagining things. Maybe, if he blinks enough times, what he's seeing will disappear. But when nothing happened despite his repeated blinking, despite his repeated wish for this to be not real, he starts to feel tears forming in the corner of his eyes.

 

He can’t believe this.

 

He can’t believe it happened again.

 

He already decided to believe that nothing bad will ever happen to Naegi. Not to Naegi, of all people, because he's hope, he's hope in human form, and someone like Komaeda shouldn’t be able to do anything to destroy hope.

 

“Makoto-kun,” Komaeda finally found his voice, finally remembered that he, in fact, possesses the ability to move, and he cups Naegi’s face, still hoping that maybe Naegi was just asleep. Naegi’s skin felt cold to the touch, and Komaeda feels more tears coming because this isn’t how things should be. Between the two of them, Naegi was the one filled with warmth, Naegi’s embraces were always filled with warmth, and he was the one who always could effectively remove Komaeda’s worries with just a single smile.

 

“Makoto-kun, please don’t do this.” But the coldness of Naegi’s skin then felt too real, and Komaeda felt like he couldn’t do anything but hug Naegi closer to himself. Naegi’s head is now leaning on his chest, and he's still wishing for Naegi to return his embrace right then and there, but nothing came. “Makoto-kun, please, you can’t. We still have so many things to do together, please, please don’t do this.”

 

Komaeda buries his face in Naegi’s hair, and he really just couldn’t stop himself from shaking so much as he does so. “W-We’re supposed to stay together forever, right? Please wake up, please, please, this can’t happen. I-I'm begging you. Please wake up, Makoto-kun.”

 

Nothing happens.

 

He can’t believe this.

 

Naegi doesn’t deserve any of this. Naegi has been nothing but kind to him, to everyone, and Naegi made him feel like he's actually worth something. He always smiled at Komaeda, telling him kind things that Komaeda has a really hard time to digest, but the way he says it is filled with so much sincerity that sometimes Komaeda thinks maybe it won’t be so difficult to believe them, after all.

 

But maybe that’s why this happened.

 

This happened because he was kind to Komaeda. This happened because he mattered to Komaeda, and he's the one that Komaeda wouldn’t want to lose the most. Komaeda’s chest starts to hurt, breathing starts to be difficult, and right then, he wishes that he just stop breathing altogether.

 

Naegi is dead. Komaeda doesn’t know if there will ever be an act of good luck that will be proportionate to this. No amount of money or lottery winnings would ever, ever measure Naegi’s importance to him. Even if all the money in this world falls in his hands, it won’t matter.

 

Right then and there, Komaeda wished to die.

 

\--

 

“Nagito-kun,” Komaeda hears a gentle voice, and he feels a pair of arms comfortingly wrapped around him. He doesn’t process this too right away, but when he does and stares at his surroundings—the same bus as earlier, clean, no blood, no damage—he immediately pulls away from whoever’s holding him, and he’d like to think he started crying then if only he wasn’t already before that.

 

There was Naegi, safe, alive, a worried expression on his face. “Nagito-kun, you were crying in your sleep, what's—”

 

Normally, Komaeda would think it’s rude to interrupt Naegi. But right now, he couldn’t even stop himself as he inadvertently does so by immediately leaning in and wrapping Naegi on a firm hug.

 

“It was a really bad dream, wasn’t it?” Naegi ever so kindly returns the hug, even gently running his hand a couple of times on Komaeda’s back. “Whatever it is, it’s not real. I'm here for you, okay?”

 

“I apologize if this is impertinent to ask, but,” Komaeda tightens the hug even more. “Only if it’s okay… I’d really… appreciate it if you continue holding me for a little longer.”

 

“Of course it’s okay.” He feels Naegi planting a soft kiss on his forehead. “Anything for you.”

 

If Naegi were to die now, Komaeda wholly believes that he would be an angel afterward. Naegi is so pure, from childhood up until the present time, and he treats everyone with so much respect, even Komaeda who doesn’t deserve his kindness.

 

If Naegi were to die now, this is what Komaeda would think.

 

\--

 

Naegi didn’t want Komaeda to talk to Hinata as long as Naegi and Hinata haven’t sorted out what happened among themselves. While doing nothing does feel worrying for Komaeda, he also knows that if he meddles, he’d probably end up making the situation worse.

 

Komaeda takes a deep breath as he places his hand on the doorknob. This was his dorm room, and it’s practically his home, but right now, despite not spending time in it for only two nights recently, it’s like the feeling of going back inside is something foreign.

 

He takes another deep breath.

 

He doesn’t know how he’d act in front of Hinata. Should he continue totally ignoring the other? Is it really okay to go back and sleep in the same room? If it isn’t, Naegi would most probably say something, but before parting tonight, all Naegi did was to smile at him and wish him good night.

 

A deep breath once more. He hopes that he’ll be able to stay firm. He hopes that whatever the conflict between Hinata and Naegi is, it gets fixed soon. He hopes that all of this was just a misunderstanding instead of something going really wrong between the two of them.

 

Komaeda finally turns the knob and gently pushes the door open, his nervousness rising with each second. He really doesn’t know how he’d act. Even if this isn’t the first time he has to do this, it still feels foreign somehow because he wholeheartedly thought this wouldn’t have to happen again.

 

He only realizes he was holding his breath when he doesn’t see the switched-on light bulb that he was expecting, the immediate greeting that Hinata would give him, and Hinata’s presence itself. Because no, the room was empty, and he actually finds it within himself to sigh in relief because of that.

 

He wonders if this is good luck. And if it is, he wonders what bad luck he had to unknowingly endure earlier to deserve this.

 

\--

 

Maybe Hinata was just out doing something. That was what Komaeda thought when he first saw the empty room. But more than a couple of hours already passed and it’s currently ten in the evening, and Hinata still isn’t home.

 

Komaeda looks at the clock again because he was hoping that he read the time wrong, but no. It really is ten in the evening—the clock indicated that a minute has passed as Komaeda thought about this—and Hinata really still isn’t home.

 

Maybe Hinata was out with Souda or anyone from their class then. Maybe Hinata was bored or lonely being all by himself in the room, so he wanted to go out and meet with someone. That’s a good possibility, and Komaeda would want it to be right, but he doesn’t really have the means to confirm it at the moment.

 

Right now, he couldn’t really contact anyone with his phone except for Naegi. His entire phone was accidentally wiped clean by Naegi recently, and Komaeda makes a mental and brief note to ask for his classmates’ numbers again.

 

Of course, there's also the option of him visiting his classmates’ dorm rooms and checking if Hinata is in one of them. But then again, that would just seem like he's ready to talk to Hinata, and it would just be horribly rude if he shows up there and Hinata would try to start a conversation with him, only for him to briefly go away without responding.

 

And it’s ten in the evening. If Hinata isn’t in any of their classmates’ rooms, then Komaeda would just be interrupting their sleep.

 

But then again, wouldn’t it be even more worrisome if Hinata indeed isn’t in any of their rooms?

 

‘ _Makoto-kun, good evening._ ’ Komaeda starts to type. Right now, this is his only choice. ‘ _I understand that you and Hinata-kun have an unresolved misunderstanding at the moment, but I'm just really worried right now because he still isn’t in our room. I understand if you wouldn’t want me to check on him myself, so if it’s okay, can you do it for me? I'm sorry for the bother._ ’

 

Komaeda didn’t realize that he fell asleep while waiting for a reply, and when he woke up at around one AM, Hinata still isn’t around, the same way with Naegi’s reply.

 

\--

 

Still neither were around when Komaeda woke up at six in the morning.

 

That was when he decides to really go room-to-room like he should have done last night. He promptly heads to the bathroom just to rinse his mouth, run his fingers through his hair a couple of times as an effort to make himself look slightly presentable, and goes out the room.

 

He’ll have to consciously do something impertinent if Hinata indeed is in one of the rooms, but at least that means Hinata is safe.

 

\--

 

Komaeda first goes to Souda and Tanaka’s shared room because if Hinata’s going to sleep over someone’s place, this was the likeliest choice. He only realizes exactly how nervous he is when he already lifts his fist to knock on the door.

 

He can’t believe this.

 

He can’t believe he's nervous because of this.

 

He gently knocks on the door twice. He has a slight hope that his knocks were too gentle to be heard, so that he’d have the excuse that both Souda and Tanaka didn’t hear him, and thus, he could just run away, but he quickly chastises himself when he realizes how selfish that is.

 

Right now, he should stop thinking about himself.

 

A disgruntled Souda shortly shows up behind the door, and his already annoyed expression visibly worsens when he sees that it’s Komaeda who disturbed him this early in the morning. Komaeda almost feels guilty, but he briefly reminds himself why he's here in the first place. “…Why’re you here?”

 

“Um, good morning, Souda-kun. I'm really sorry for the bother.” Komaeda forces a smile. “I just wanted to check if Hinata-kun might have slept in your room?”

 

“Huh?” Souda furrows his eyebrows. Earlier, when he first showed up behind the door, there were still remnants of drowsiness on his face. Upon hearing Komaeda’s question, however, a hint of alertness started to show. “What, do you mean Hinata didn’t go home last night?”

 

“Well…” Komaeda’s worry starts to grow. “That’s right. I was hoping that he might have decided to hang out with you and Tanaka-kun, but I guess I was mistaken.”

 

“Good god, that’s serious, man! I doubt he’d want to spend the night in Hanamura and Nidai’s room—I mean, their room is the only option by now because Kuzuryuu goes home, and I sure as hell doubt even more that Hinata would go all the way to Kuzuryuu’s place, so if he isn’t here—” Souda didn’t even bother to mask his horror. “Hiyaaah! Hinata has been kidnapped!”

 

“Um, haha, I don’t think we should rush to that conclusion—”

 

“Hey, hamster shit, wake up!” Souda was suddenly absent in front of Komaeda. “Wake the fuck up! Hinata has been kidnapped!”

 

“Souda-kun, let’s not conclude that right away.” Komaeda forces a chuckle. “There still are a lot of other possibilities. For all we know, maybe Hinata-kun just wanted to go somewhere else for the weekend and would be back any moment now. But can you try contacting him? I accidentally reformatted my phone, so…”

 

“Yeah, I know! That’s what I plan to do too! I'm not stupid!” Tanaka’s low murmurs of ‘insolent fiend, possessing the nerve to cut short the slumber of a demon’ and other similar phrases accompanied Souda’s response. “Anyway, I'm telling everyone, and I'm sending you our numbers too. Not because we’re buddy-buddy or anything, but because I'm worried about Hinata. I mean, you're the one who can tell us if he's already back! But seriously, which idiot still accidentally reformats their phone?”

 

“Haha, right… Thank you though, Souda-kun. I’ll be sure to tell everyone right away when Hinata-kun comes back.”

 

\--

 

Komaeda can feel the impossible-to-ignore worried vibe that all his classmates seem to be emitting at the moment, and he's pretty sure that he too might be the same, when they see that everyone is already in the classroom except for Hinata.

 

Hinata’s usually punctual. He isn’t the type of student who shows up when there's only five minutes or less left. Komaeda checks the clock of the classroom—again, he doesn’t know how many times he did already—and it’s true that each second the clock ticks, the five minutes left get consumed.

 

Each second the clock ticks, Komaeda starts to get even more worried.

 

‘ _Makoto-kun, good morning._ ’ Komaeda stares at his phone and wonders if this is okay. ‘ _I'm sorry for bothering you yet again. I don’t know if you were able to read my message last night, but this is about Hinata-kun just like that message. You know how diligent he is. Normally, he’d be here already, and he still isn’t. To top it off, none of our classmates know where he is. Is it okay if I contact him? Or were you able to reach him? I'm really sorry if I seem like I'm nagging._ ’

 

This time, Naegi replies.

 

‘ _Sure, go on._ ’

 

For some reason, despite being a positive reply, Naegi’s response doesn’t inspire confidence in him.

 

‘ _Is it really okay?_ ’

 

‘ _Yes. Do what you want, Nagito-kun. It really is worrying for him to suddenly disappear :)_ ’

 

‘ _Thank you for understanding ;~;_ ’

 

‘ _No problem :)_ ’

 

Komaeda would attempt to contact Hinata then and there, but the teacher already started with the discussion. While it would feel wrong for him to postpone trying to reach Hinata, while it feels like he's wasting every second not used in contacting him, he still puts back his phone in his pocket and waits for the break time.

 

\--

 

That’s why Komaeda doesn’t waste any time the moment the break time starts. He quickly takes his phone from his pocket, selecting Hinata’s number, and calling it.

 

He just wants Hinata to pick up. Any kind of reassurance that Hinata is safe at the moment, Komaeda will appreciate. Each ring fuels Komaeda’s nervousness, but he’d also be lying if he says that they don’t fuel his hope too.

 

The phone rings and rings.

 

Komaeda sees Naegi on the corner of his eyes, the latter peeking in the classroom, probably to check on him. Komaeda turns around, giving him a prompt wave and smile, and Naegi takes that as an invitation to enter the room and sit beside Komaeda.

 

“He's not picking up?” That was what Naegi asked as he sat down on the chair beside Komaeda.

 

Komaeda nods, biting his lower lip. “That’s right… but I'm hoping and wishing he would.”

 

“Just hold on to that hope, Nagito-kun.” Naegi nods, showing him a smile. He can tell that Naegi is trying to be comforting, and the effort just sends a warm feeling to Komaeda’s chest. “I'm sure that Hinata-kun is just here somewhere.”

 

“Thank you so much, Makoto-kun.”

 

‘ _The number that you dialed is either unattended or out of coverage area. Please try your call later._ ’

 

Komaeda sighs and drops the call.

 

He continues his attempts even as he and Naegi exit the room.

 

His attempts continue to be fruitless even as the school day reached its end.

 

\--

 

“So what are you going to do now?” Naegi was softly running his thumb on the back of Komaeda’s hand as they walk from the school building, the dorms as destination in mind. “I wish I could do something to help you. If you come up with anything I can do, just tell me.”

 

“You being here with me already helped a lot, you know.” Komaeda lets out a chuckle to ease out the nervousness that he's still feeling. It’s as if he hasn’t stopped being nervous the whole day at all, and he thinks it would continue being that way until he finally hears Hinata speaking. “I guess, right now, I should ask our homeroom adviser if he has a way to contact Hinata-kun’s parents. For all we know, maybe Hinata-kun suddenly wanted to visit his home and just forgot to tell anyone.”

 

“That’s a good possibility.” Naegi smiles. “Let’s go then? I’ll stay with you all throughout. I’d feel bad leaving you alone when I know you must be so worried right now. And of course, I'm worried too… I just want to see Hinata-kun again and finally fix whatever misunderstanding we had.”

 

“Me too, actually.” Komaeda sheepishly smiles. “Both you and Hinata-kun are really kind people. I know you guys wouldn’t enjoy being on bad terms with a close friend.”

 

“And I also still feel bad having to drag you into that mess.” Naegi sighs. “I really want to make it up to you, Nagito-kun.”

 

“Makoto-kun, you shouldn’t be too hard on yourself!” Komaeda shows him a smile, lightly squeezing his hand. Naegi’s smiles were always gentle and encouraging, and as disgusting as Komaeda is, he's trying to hold on to the hope that he can somehow be a source of support for Naegi too. “You only did what you felt you had to. And if there's something you think was a mistake, then I'm sure that someone as great and hopeful as you will be able to fix it in a heartbeat!”

 

“You really think so?” Naegi has a small smile on his face then, and Komaeda feels so pleasantly warm because of that mere sight.

 

“Of course. I unreservedly trust you, Makoto-kun.” Komaeda feels a hint of warmth on his own face as he says that. “Anyway, let’s go to the faculty rooms. I hope we finally reach Hinata-kun before this day ends. I don’t even mind if it’s just on the phone… I just hope he's okay.”

 

“As I said earlier, I'm sure he's just here somewhere.” Naegi runs his thumb on the back of Komaeda’s hand again. “And it really would be great if we can reach him right away.”

 

\--

 

Komaeda carefully knocks on the door when they finally reach the correct faculty room. Naegi was still holding his other hand, still gently running his soft thumb on the back of Komaeda’s hand, and Komaeda just wants nothing but to focus on that sensation so that he’d forget about his current nervousness and his worry.

 

The door shortly opens, the familiar face of his class adviser shows up to greet them with a respectful smile. “Good afternoon. Is there anything I can do for you?”

 

“Um, haha, good afternoon, sir. I apologize for the bother, but there's just something I would like to request.” Komaeda immediately replies, returning his teacher’s polite smile, though his probably ended up looking just a tad bit sheepish. “See, I would like to inform you that I'm the roommate of Hinata-kun—Hinata Hajime-kun—and that he hasn’t been home since last night. Not only that, he didn’t show up for class today too, and I couldn’t contact him at all… so I was hoping that you could maybe give me a way to reach his parents. I just wouldn’t be able to rest easy not knowing if he's safe.”

 

“Oh.” The teacher just slowly nods, his eyes lit in recognition. Komaeda starts to wonder if he really is too nervous about this whole deal because their teacher didn’t even show a hint of surprise upon hearing what he had to say. “Right, Hinata-kun’s roommate…”

 

Komaeda just nods too, waiting for the teacher to continue speaking.

 

“I sincerely apologize, Komaeda-kun. I can imagine your worry. But rest assured, you do not have to preoccupy yourself with this anymore.” For a moment, Komaeda’s incessant worry was replaced with confusion. “Hinata-kun has been expelled.”

 

And that confusion blossoms and blossoms, because that doesn’t even make sense—

 

“Expelled?” Naegi repeats. Komaeda was thankful that Naegi was here because for a moment there, it was as if he completely forgot how to formulate words. Naegi looked as confused as he was, and it was admirable that he still was able to react on time and aptly at that too. “If it’s alright, can we know why? Hinata-kun has just been here a couple of days ago, and I'm sure that Komaeda-kun would know if he was doing anything worthy of expulsion.”

 

“Ah,” He turns to Naegi, that polite smile coming back. “You're the Super High School Level Hope. Naegi-kun, if I remember correctly? You are a friend of Hinata-kun’s too?”

 

Naegi nods. “And we’re really concerned about him. So we’d appreciate it if you tell us.”

 

“Hinata-kun has been expelled.” He simply repeats, still with a smile. “Unfortunately—and really, I am moved by this display of friendship—that is all I can let you know. But as I said, you both have nothing to worry about anymore. He is not missing for no reason, if that is what you are thinking, and his parents are most certainly aware of his expulsion. There is nothing to worry about. Once again, I apologize. We should have announced this better.”

 

Hinata has been expelled.

 

Hinata has been expelled, and he can’t know why.

 

Hinata has been expelled, and the last time they met each other, all he did was to ignore Hinata.

 

Naegi was right. If Hinata ever did something worthy of expulsion, Komaeda would be able to notice some hints, at least, living in the same room with him and all. If there's anyone who would break rules to that extent, Komaeda is sure that he can claim with whole conviction that Hinata is one of the last persons who would.

 

Hinata has always admired and respected Hope’s Peak. That’s something that Komaeda has in common with him. So Hinata would never want to do something that will risk his attendance in the academy.

 

“You really can’t tell us why, sir?” Komaeda finally found it with himself to speak. “As Makoto-kun pointed out, I'm the one who usually sees him… and I know better than anyone that Hinata-kun couldn’t possibly have done something to deserve getting expelled.”

 

“I must comply with instructions, and we are instructed to be quiet about this matter.” He replies. “And if you guys are really Hinata-kun’s friends, then I am positive that you would be alright with respecting his privacy. After all, if he really wanted someone to know, he would have told them, right?”

 

Privacy. The word seems to reverberate in Komaeda’s ears. Would he really be intruding if he continues to prod? Would Hinata really appreciate it better if Komaeda just accepts this as it is? Is his current concern nothing but impudence?

 

Right. If he really wanted Komaeda to know, Hinata would have told him. But then again, Komaeda was insistent on not talking to him, so what if Hinata did want to tell but he just couldn’t? The state of being uncertain—it’s a feeling that Komaeda should know the best, but at the moment, he still manages to be deeply uncomfortable.

 

“If that is all, then I suppose I should send you away now.” The teacher smiles once again. “I still have essays to read and papers to check. See you both tomorrow.”

 

The door closes.

 

Komaeda wanted to knock again—none of that has been satisfying at all—but he wills himself not to.

 

\--

 

“Should I have asked for the contact numbers of Hinata-kun’s parents, after all?” Komaeda says after a long while. He and Naegi headed to the courtyard after the rather discouraging talk with the teacher, and for a good ten minutes or so, there was nothing but companionable silence between the two of them. The conversation kept on playing in Komaeda’s head, and he was infinitely thankful that Naegi respected his silence. Naegi was just so supportive. Komaeda still wonders why he deserved to have someone like him.

 

“I suppose it wouldn’t have hurt if you did.” Naegi replies. “I mean, we could have better luck asking them. If that’s right, then that’s good. But if they'd insist on keeping quiet too, then at least we tried.”

 

“Haha, I thought so! I guess I was overtaken by surprise earlier… I mean, Hinata-kun? Expelled?” Komaeda forces a chuckle. “I couldn’t make that up even if I tried!”

 

“I agree. Hinata-kun is a really good student, after all. I can tell he always gives his best to anything that he does.”

 

“Right… Hinata-kun’s things are still in our dorm room, you know. Maybe it’s possible for me to see him again… because he’d have to get his things for sure.”

 

“Maybe.” Naegi nods, smiling. “And if the ones who come to get his things are his parents, then you'll be able to talk to them too.”

 

“You're right. I'm still hoping that I could talk to Hinata-kun himself though… but if that were to happen instead, then I guess I shouldn’t complain too.”

 

“Just take what you can. I’ll be here with you.” Naegi plants a kiss on his cheek. “Just stay close to me. We’ll surely find him.”

 

\--

 

 


End file.
